Thing #13 Tagging and Discover Del.icio.us

Unique! I like it! I must admit though, I did have some trouble understanding how I ended up working on Internet Explorer when I regularly access the internet through AT&T Yahoo! Although I was able to place the bookmark icons onto my Internet Explorer toolbar, when I signed onto the internet the next time, they are not visible. That's because I'm using Yahoo!

If this sounds confusing, it is to me. I have some kinks to work through. If anyone can give me some insight, please feel free to do so.

Once I solve my dilemma, I see great potential for this social bookmarking site. It's like creating your own unique database that you and others can access from various sources. What a wonderful tool for anybody that's tired of editing their bookmarks from the toolbar once the list has become too lengthy.

Thing #12 Creating Community Through Commenting

The comments that struck me the most came from Blue Skunk. I felt he honestly spoke when he said that bloggers care that others read their blogs. Maybe others don't feel this way, but I know I feel a little bit happier when I notice a comment on my blog.

But what I really took to heart was Blue Skunk's reminder to simply reply with a "Thank You" when someone replies to your blog. How thoughtful and professional!

The other blogs on commenting were insightful as well. I was reminded to add a smile when correcting or criticizing someones blog post; that's the reason I chose to add the picture you see before you now. The picture reminds me to choose my words carefully when making comments; everyone has feelings. More importantly, don't be afraid to comment. Communication, that's the whole point of blogging.

Thing #11 LibraryThing

Will wonders never cease! Well, I went ahead and added the Library Thing blog link to my RSS reader. I look forward to getting better acquainted with this site. Library Thing incorporates so many unique features that I don't quite know where to begin. I like the idea that fun statistics and recommendations can be created from the titles I log into my profile. How neat! Not only can I read reviews submitted by others, but I can also contribute reviews to the site as well. Sounds like a good place to seriously begin writing reviews as an information professional.

There are several groups that I might be interested in. I went ahead and took a peek inside the "Hogwarts Express" group. Not quite what I expected. The members all seem to be chatting about accidental bodily injuries. Why did I think they would be talking about books in the Harry Potter series.?

Well, I didn't give up. On to another group. Next, I choose to have a look at the "Christianity" group. Boy, are they mad at a fellow named Pullman! Thankfully, someone included a link to explain the situation. I felt that these members at least stayed on topic with the group's apparent aim. I might try to join them for the time being. Overall, I like this website. I'm curious to see how I can develop my library over time.

Thing #9 Useful Library-Related Blogs and News Feeds

Most of the methods discussed in Thing #9 for the most part were user-friendly. However, the search method I preferred more was Bloglines and Google Blog search. The two sites listed reads in the same fashion as a search query. In addition, Google Blog search allows you to receive email alerts for other blogs that fit a desired search.

I need to study the Technorati and the Topix.net sites a little more. Unlike Bloglines and Google Blog search, these two sites appeared as ordinary web pages with a lot more information to sift through.

I've learned that there are millions of blogs out there. It's going to take some time to find specific blogs and/or newsreaders that I have a particular interest in (for example, information relating to the "Church of Christ"). When I tried to search for newsreads and blogs with this search term, I received some unusual results. Overall, I think this is a very worthy venture that I'm about to embark on.

Thing #8 RSS Feeds and Readers

RSS and newsreaders has provided me and other users a very organized and timely manner in which to receive news/updates from favorite websites. What I particularly like is the amount of time that can be saved not having to bookmark separate websites or subscribe to individual electronic newsletters.

I feel that I will be able to stay connected with current events around the nation and the world a little bit easier now.

Librarians have another great tool at our disposal. First, I would like to see information professionals acquaint others with Google Reader or other similar newsreaders. Readers can be a smart research tool for both students and teachers. Remember, our job is to inform users how to access and retrieve information in a variety of formats. Second, I imagine that I can keep up with the most recent reviews of children's literature and other related material.

Thing #7 Cool Google Tools

Wow! Those were a lot of cool tools. I took the time to explore the following two tools in more detail: Google Calendar and Google Notebook.

Google Calendar is a very interactive calendar that goes way beyond simply informing you of what day it is. What I liked most is how the calendar allows you to invite others to an event listed on you calendar by email. And the nifty event reminder will notify you either by email, pop-up window or a text message to your cell phone of upcoming appointments, birthdays, etc. I'm throwing away my paper calendar today. This is the way to go!

But there's more. I also liked the fact that you can create multiple calendars - a very useful feature to keep your life organized. For example, teachers, librarians and students could set up separate class, personal or work calendars. The sharing setting allows users to share their calendars with others. What a great feature for libraries. I wonder if the Houston Public Library system uses a similar feature to keep track of all the events at their various facilities?

Well, I was simply in love with the Google Calendar until I clicked on the Google Notebook. Here is a place where I can organize those little slips of paper all around my house. Are you kidding! This is another wonderful use of technology. Think of all the trees I will be saving by organizing my thoughts on this site. I can also imagine that students, teachers and librarians could benefit from use of this site when it comes to organizing papers and lesson plans. However, I feel that this site could benefit from some more interactive features such as templates.

Thing #6 Mashups and 3rd Party Sites

The Flickr mashup I found most intriguing was Mosaic Makr. Using the search term "babies" I created the mosaic seen in this blog. "Babies" was such a broad search term that I found more than young children, as you can see. This is a wonderful site that can be utilized in hundreds of ways. I could personally see myself arranging family photos into some sort of scrapbook. Great invention!

As far as Mosaic Makr's potential use in the library, the possibilities are endless. The site can be used to enhance student projects, to help aid teachers in the classroom or just for fun. I'm thinking of utilizing the site in my school's newsletter for the upcoming year. I may be able to create unique images to capture memorable moments during our school year.

Thing #5 Flickr

This was my first visit to Flickr. I found that the website was fairly easy to use. I chose this particular picture for Thing #5 because it calls to mind the act of investigating. My experience with Library2Play has been an enjoyable investigation into the world of Web 2.o technologies.

I found it curious that so many personal photos were available for view by any interested party. Personally, I'm not sure that I would upload family pictures to such a public site. However, I find Flickr to be a great site to share professional photos with colleagues around the world. The group feature is a great way to share with those of common interests. Will this same group feature provide privacy if I only wanted family members to view particular photos? I guess I should go back and find the answer to my question. Overall, Flickr is a very useful website.